The Goods from 2014 Topps Series 1

It's tough to find US cards at affordable prices. The "used goods" market in Japan is just like the "new goods" market - overpriced. There just isn't very many places for normal people to sell their cards, so the card stores can charge high prices. There is Yahoo! Auctions, the Japanese equivalent of eBay, but like in the States, shipping is a factor on lower-priced items.

I spend way too much time with cards. You can figure at least an hour a day writing my post, scanning and inventorying my cards, and just doing general odds and ends. Add browsing on eBay, COMC, Just Commons, and SportsLots, and the time it takes to get to the card stores when I make what seems to be weekly rounds, and I'm sure I "waste" 20 hours a week!

But the fun in writing and getting comments (even when I'm too "busy" or tired to properly reply for a few days), trading, and the thrill of the hunt keeps me going.

And going, and going. My Sunday or Monday card store excursions generally last 5-7 hours, including the train rides into and around Tokyo and back home again, and walking to the stores. I get some good exercise putting several kilometers on my shoes, and sometimes I'm rewarded with an interesting find.

2014 Topps is old news, I suppose, but I still want those '89 Minis so I can build a set. I started the act of putting together a set when I found a handful of minis at a local shop:

 The player selection on the minis isn't necessarily new - the checklist is similar to other Topps insert checklists of its size. But the images are mostly new to me and the '89 design looks better here than it did in 1989.

 The colored border is a little thick, perhaps. But I'm happy with it.

 Six cards down. 44 to go. Plus the second series. Topps keeps making the insert sets I want to collect difficult to obtain. I don't need to mention Heritage's Embossed inserts again, do I?

 I picked up a few random inserts for my type collection, too. I couldn't remember exactly which ones I had from my pack. I knew I needed a Power Players card and a Gold card, but with all the posts I've read online and my own post I have seen all these designs several times already.

 The 50 Years of the Draft design is growing on me, but not fast enough.

 Something I liked when I first pulled one from my pack was the Before They Were Great insert set. Again, the player selection doesn't really change, but I like the design and the pictures from early in the players' careers. It would have been better with minor league or even college or high school photos.

Four down, and 26 to go. Another set that'll be tough to build. And another set added to my want list... the list I'm trying to cut down.